National Guys Beginning To Catch On About Byron Leftwich
October 31st, 2022
Bucs OC Byron Leftwich.
It’s painfully obvious to most Bucs fans that one man is holding the Bucs back from winning one of the worst divisions the NFL has seen in years.
And that would be offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich.
If you cannot figure out how to have a tolerable running attack with an OK if not decent offensive line and Tom Brady as your quarterback, then there is no good reason you should b kept on the Team Glazer payroll.
Most sensible Bucs fans know it. And now, your national media types can see it.
Bavarian pretzel-chomping, teeth-brushing, haircut-fascinated, Circa-bewildered, elf-rattled, green-lawns-frowning, soggy-socks-wearing, Daylight-Savings-Time-scared, crossword-puzzle-puzzled, Elon-Musk-peeved, Barstool-Sports-triggered, almond-milk-sipping, hot-dog-eating-contest-protesting, mock-draft-scowling, L.L.-Bean-wearing, tennis fans’ advocate, Second Amendment abolitionist, Mike-Florio-arguing, parrot-insensitive, chewing-with-his-mouth-open, soup-gulping, California-train-romancing, anti-football proliferation, outhouse-admiring, airline-napping, steerage-flying, Yogi Berra-worshiping, urinal-picture-taking, video-game-playing, Taylor-Swift-listening, pickpocket-thwarting, Bucs-uniform-frowning, Allie LaForce-smitten, Big-Ten-Network-hating, pedestrian-bumping, olive oil-lapping, popcorn-munching, coffee-slurping, fried-chicken-eating, oatmeal-loving, circle-jerking, craft-beer-chugging, cricket-watching, scone-loathing, college football-naïve, baseball-box-score-reading, NPR-honk, filthy-hotel-staying, fight-instigating, barista-training, Budweiser-tolerant, baseball-scorecard-keeping, pasta-feasting, vomit-dodging scrooge, Kay-Adams-following, Coors-Light-souring, pineapple-upside-down-cake-eating social activist and NFL insider of NBC Sports fame, Peter King, roasted Leftwich for one particularly stupid call on Thursday night in a painful loss to the Crows.
I think the most incredible call I saw this week was a damaged, limited Julio Jones—who’d sat five of the previous six games and played just 18 total snaps in that span with a knee injury that won’t go away—being called on to make a crucial play for Tampa Bay in the third quarter Thursday night. Baltimore had just tied the game at 10, and the Bucs gained 20 and eight on their first two plays of the ensuing drive. Now it was second-and-two. Bucs called a jet sweep. They called a jet sweep for the hobbled Julio Jones! Jones, and not Scotty Miller, the 4.39-in-the-40 wideout. Gain of zero. Not a good decision. A Tom Brady incompletion followed. And a punt. To sum up: First two plays of the drive: gain of 20, gain of 8. Next two: gain of zero, gain of zero. Punt.
There is mounting evidence of how Leftwich is over his head. He was given a Cadillac of offenses with the greatest quarterback who ever lived (who FYI currently leads the NFL in passing).
Armed with this gift from the gods (Bruce Arians), Leftwich instead has the Bucs on pace for the worst rushing attack in modern NFL history. Only once has this offense scored more than 22 points.
Joe sees coaches up and down the league that are getting far more out of their offenses with far less.
Unless the Bucs have no serious intentions of winning the division and making the playoffs, why is Leftwich still employed?
October 31st, 2022 at 10:34 am
Even casuals are catching on.
Poor coaching does not stop on the offense.
The players no longer believe in their coaching staff.
And it will get worse.
No head, no heart, no leadership.
Rams by 3 tuddies.
October 31st, 2022 at 10:36 am
But we all knew this from day one even on our SB run. Leftwitch was never good and Bowles needs to stick with what he knows which is Defence. The dramatic fall is stunning.
October 31st, 2022 at 10:36 am
Tyler Johnson and Ryan Smith back in our practice squad. Season saved! Lol. Certainly nice to see familiar faces though. Smith was a special teams ace and hard not to think TJ could have contributed more than some of the other guys we’ve had after Evans and Godwin
October 31st, 2022 at 10:38 am
This would have been a good week to make the change if they still want to win this very sad division. It’s obviously not working through the first 8 games.
October 31st, 2022 at 10:40 am
Fire Leftwich
October 31st, 2022 at 10:42 am
Repeat after me….
“Let’s go Byron”
October 31st, 2022 at 10:42 am
Is Arians still a consultant for the Bucs? Where is he on all this? Surely he must be immensely disappointed in both of his former coordinators.
October 31st, 2022 at 10:42 am
There is this other play during th 2-pt conversion. Rashaad White run through a thick layer of wall. Obviously, RAvens saw the formation and voila! zero pts….. Fire Bowles and Leftwich NOW!!!! Save the season.
October 31st, 2022 at 10:47 am
If Glazers are having a problem looking for coach replacement, just google available coaches. Advertise that they will be driving a Mercedes Benz or a Cadillac and we just need a competent, knowledgeable, creative and motivational driver. Without these requirements, no need to apply.
October 31st, 2022 at 10:49 am
All being buc fans for as long as we have been, we know what bad coaching is (Bennent, Shiano, Perkins, Smith, Williamson, Bowles) and guess what??? This is what it looks like.
October 31st, 2022 at 10:49 am
Actions speak louder than words. if the Bucs are ALL In this year then some moves need to be made this week. Bucs need to trade for a big name or 2 and should obviously change Offensive playcaller (maybe defense too lol).
BUCS. Time to PUT UP OR SHUT UP.
October 31st, 2022 at 10:50 am
I would love to see Leftie shown the door, but who is out there to replace him?
Same with Bowles. The only coaches out there are even stinkier trash.
I think we are stuck for the season, but I would love to see the Bucs make a run for Josh Hoepel from the U of Tennessee. Offensive dominance just seems to follow him around.
October 31st, 2022 at 10:58 am
Don’t hang Byron by himself…….Todd Bowels Movement has filled the Den of Depression with a lot of poop….
October 31st, 2022 at 10:59 am
It is a real shame we have wasted Brady’s last year, at least in Tampa.
He will surely be gone next year, either retired, or playing somewhere else.
Many think he will be a 49er next year ?
At least out there he will have a real coach, and a real running game, on a team that is a legitimate contender.
No way we fire either of our coaches, until this season is over.
October 31st, 2022 at 11:08 am
Glad to have Tyler back….a little late though
October 31st, 2022 at 11:10 am
Fire Leftwich!
October 31st, 2022 at 11:12 am
That Cadillac was downgraded to a gremlin. Finally finally national media is catching up to Bucs fans. They are slow sometimes because they get focus on stars too much
October 31st, 2022 at 11:16 am
Agreed Chris. I think the 49ers trade for CMC was made with an eye to next year in addition to the immediate benefits.
Sadly as much as I disdain the coaching leadership this year, I believe those who think a mid-season regime change at either coordinator level will be disappointed by the results it yields. Rock and a hard place folks.
October 31st, 2022 at 11:16 am
It can’t be that the problem is an OL that can’t run block and a QB who is clearly not right.
October 31st, 2022 at 11:23 am
Dan Mullien is a great offensive play caller and should possibly looked at to replace this knucklehead. Mullen is a lousy HC and lousy recruiter but as OC he could just design an offense. Look what he did with Trask
October 31st, 2022 at 11:27 am
Anybody notice that when the Bucs are winning and doing well that Jason Licht is everywhere smiling and bragging and taking credit, but when the Bucs are losing and not doing well Licht is missing and nowhere to be found?
If Bucs continue to lose I expect to see Jason’s face on a milk carton soon.
#Where’sJason?
October 31st, 2022 at 11:27 am
Look guys a good coach knows when to let a player(s) walk because they are loafing or just doesnt want to be on the team anymore or how to hype players up. It all start at the top with Bowles being a loseing head coach and Leftwitch inexperience as a OC. They both suck which means the team will suck plane and simple. I mean look at both of them at the post game press conf. they look like the cartoon dog droopy blah blah blah we have to play better blah blah.
October 31st, 2022 at 11:38 am
I kinda get tired of reading the same crap over & over again. Until the Glazers or Licht fires Leftwitch there’s really nothing to read about. If for some reason they come to there senses & fire Lefty the next head on the chopping block should be Bowles. He’s no HC.
October 31st, 2022 at 11:39 am
Brady leads the league in passing, fewest interceptions top 3 in tight window and big time throws with a completely incompetent offensive coordinator, one of the worst running games of all time , receivers the break off route or quit , drop the ball. Tampa think about how lucky you’ll have to have a once in a generation GOAT
October 31st, 2022 at 11:44 am
Firing Leftwich right now will make no difference in this teams performance for the rest of this year. We are..HIT. And all of you know it. You just want a scapegoat for now. We win 2 straight games and you are all back on the bandwagon. Funny how that works.
October 31st, 2022 at 11:48 am
Remember when everyone made it about race (wait) sorry I wasn’t suppose to make lazy narratives accountable…
The truth always comes out in the wash.
BA was the glue guy!
October 31st, 2022 at 11:54 am
Saw that play coming from a mile away.
October 31st, 2022 at 11:55 am
You don’t have to be good when your only credential needed is to check a certain box. I thought the NFL was all about merit. Not so much anymore.
October 31st, 2022 at 11:58 am
At this point, sitting with a 3-5 record and an obviously rudderless ship of a team, why as fans would you want to see a change right now? The only way they can go is up and that means a lower draft pick. How good did that meaningless win at the end of the year against the Saints feel? It cost us the chance of drafting Quentin Nelson.
This team is dead in the water. Let it get blown to kingdom come so we can start over. A firing of a coordinator buys Bowles an excuse at the end of the year. I don’t know if the Glazers have the stomach to fire a head coach after one season and pay out that contract, but from a football standpoint it’s obviously the right move. Why give ownership a light at the end of the tunnel?
A high draft pick makes the job more attractive to a new regime and this current coaching staff kept the way it is is doing a fine job at trying to aquire that pick. Don’t try to fix things now. Put a moratorium on spending and let the season die. Bringing back the same roster for two years straight and adding old nostalgic players for Brady to have one last chance to play with has allowed this team to turn geriatric in front of our face. They’re going to have to burn it down and go young for at least two or three years now.
Here’s a fun hypothetical question. How much do you think Miami would have given to trade for Brady’s rights last offseason? Hindsight being 20/20, what an opportunity missed.
October 31st, 2022 at 11:58 am
Lefty and Bowles both no rushing offense no heart on defense.
October 31st, 2022 at 12:07 pm
That’s one of the plays BA would have crossed out with his red Sharpie
October 31st, 2022 at 12:09 pm
According to both Bowles and Leftwich, its just an execution issue. Tired of the same excuse about it being execution.
October 31st, 2022 at 12:11 pm
Not just Leftwhich, poor coaching all around. Example vs Pitt. Tomlin has too many men on the field, calls timeout, gets it corrected. Tampa has 2 players running off on defense, too many men on field, result is a huge gain for Pitt that results in points and was the difference. Where was the timeout? Gotta be better all around. Bowles is the HC. He should be telling Leftwich where he needs to be better. Everyone remember the rumor about Arians correcting game plans at the end of meetings? This is the HC’s job! Goes to show that Arians was a hell of a coach.
October 31st, 2022 at 12:11 pm
Dusty – you might be on to something. Strictly as a coordinator I could see that being successful. However Mullen does not have an NFL pedigree and may be more ambitious than his talents truly afford.
October 31st, 2022 at 12:17 pm
If woke warrior and moron King is saying the same thing I’m saying, it’s going to have to make me rethink things.
October 31st, 2022 at 12:30 pm
who’s out there to replace him???????? Henry Winkler from the movie “Water Boy” Momma says
October 31st, 2022 at 12:39 pm
“They’re coming for Leftwich!! They’re coming for you Bowles!!” – Shannon Sharpe
October 31st, 2022 at 12:40 pm
alton d green Says:
October 31st, 2022 at 12:30 pm
who’s out there to replace him????????
———-
The obvious choice is QB coach Clyde Christensen, who was the OC that got Dungy fired in 2001. But he did go to Indy and had success with Dungy, he’d be the logical choice.
But they’re not going to fire Leftwich, just no way that happens. Instead, if it got that far, I think Arians would actually get on the headphones during the game and help out. Leftwich is an Arians project, and he might step in to save Leftwich’s job. Maybe. That’d be the best thing. But as for Leftwich, he has zero feel for the game, none – he also stinks at making adjustments in game. He has no future as an NFL coach unless there is a massive turnaround, which, if it happens, is going to be in spite of Leftwich, not because of him.
October 31st, 2022 at 12:50 pm
The left side of the OL is not “ok or tolerable!” A rook and a second year player both playing out of position, and D.Smith who’s hit or miss on any given Sunday! Brady does a good job of concealing the flaw by getting rid of the ball in 2 seconds or he’d probably be on a stretcher…and we surely cannot run to the left side!
October 31st, 2022 at 1:03 pm
Byron is a dead man walking. His only lifeline seems to be the HC, who refuses to make the call. Ironically the head coach is going to end up hanging himself with that same rope.
October 31st, 2022 at 1:03 pm
Rod … ‘Leftwich is an Arians project, and he might step in to save Leftwich’s job. Maybe.’
Instead of the ‘maybe’ I’d go with the ‘Nope, no way in he11, ain’t gonna happen’. BA’s legacy is cemented now; in 3 years, he got us a Super Bowl victory and a ‘close but no cigar’ the next year (first year everyone blames on Jameis & 1 scapegoat is probably enough).
I’m noticing how quiet BA has been throughout this whole thing. No one in the media dares interview him apparently, nor Tom Moore for that matter. Old, successful, retired coaches get a pass it seems. BL is dangling & twisting in the wind, so is Todd Bowles, and no way BA wants to join them. No one from the media has even asked him ‘Exactly WHY did you retire?’ Or ‘Did you see this mess coming?’ And oh ya ‘Was naming Todd Bowles as your successor conditional on Todd inheriting Byron when you rode off into the sunset?’
Of course, if I was the Glazers, I’d be asking a few other questions, such as ‘BA, exactly what are we paying you for?’ Actually I think might start asking that same question about a number of other coaches on this staff.
October 31st, 2022 at 1:04 pm
Leftwich should pray Arians does return because he’s the only coach that would keep Leftwich on the staff. Without Arians Leftwich is a QB coach at best or maybe an OC for another coach that calls his own plays like Reid or McVay.
October 31st, 2022 at 1:12 pm
Rod, you’re assuming Bowels will let BA help, he’s the big dawg now and wants to prove he isn’t living in BA’s or Brady’s shadow. How’s that working out for him. I still find it comical how we haven’t heard a peep out of the Mr. I SAY WHAT I WANT, BA. BA, where you at???
October 31st, 2022 at 1:26 pm
Bowles is a stubborn, do it my way or no way at all coach. Nothing is going to change as long as he is at the top.
4th and 2 from the plus side 48 yard line. Coward punts a d when asked about it he says it was the right call.
So this guy shows no balls as a coach but expects his players to ball out.
The players have checked out on him and Leftwich.
Leftwich refuses to run a no huddle offense until they are down by 2 scores and there is 5 minutes to go in the fourth quarter.
Fire both if these ass clowns and bring in Ken Dorsey as the head coach next year.
October 31st, 2022 at 1:38 pm
I’ve been calling for Clyde to replace BL for weeks now. The bucs are dead last in rushing attempts per game 20.4 and last in yards per game at 61.9. they are not running enough on second down. IMO, there’s two ways to run successfully. Either off a dynamic passing offense, or commitment. The bucs don’t have the first and are not committed to running. I’m not advocating for 35 rushes every game, but they absolutely could and should run more on second down.
October 31st, 2022 at 1:46 pm
“the greatest quarterback who ever lived”
How many times a day is Joe going to write this crap? He seems to be trying to convince himself of something. But what?
October 31st, 2022 at 2:01 pm
No way leftwich or bowles are fired as long as BA is around …
October 31st, 2022 at 2:42 pm
He must not have watched the whole game. Plenty worse calls than that. That was a great one tho. Way to fool yourself lefty!
October 31st, 2022 at 2:50 pm
Agree, agree, agree!!!! In my past life, I did everything I could to avoid canning people. But, in the end the good of the many……
October 31st, 2022 at 3:08 pm
I might be wrong, but I believe this is the biggest coaching staff in the NFL. Let that sink in. Counting strength and conditioning, there are 30 coaches watching over this debacle of a team, plus Arians hovering from above in whatever his job description says that he does now. THIRTY! 30! There are either a ton of mixed messages being taught or there is an insane amount of dead weight on staff. Arians daycare for wayward coaches seems to be lost without the teacher in the room.
I don’t think the Glazers have the will to buy out all of the front office/coaching contracts in this regime.
October 31st, 2022 at 3:40 pm
Arians was the only difference maker in the whole coaching staff that was elite. He called out Brady in the public, im sure he was even more harsh in person when Brady struggled. He probably checked all other coaches to do their jobs right. Bowles unfortunately has inherited Arians staff and is not as good of a coach himself. I was waiting for Leftwich to be fired after last game. Very surprised it didn’t happen.
October 31st, 2022 at 3:43 pm
We can’t pick up yard when we need to. What happened to putting Vea in as a fullback and blowing open holes? We did it in our Super Bowl run and haven’t done it since then.
October 31st, 2022 at 3:46 pm
weirdest call all game…let’s just say that…not best or worst…but weirdest
October 31st, 2022 at 4:17 pm
running a jet sweep to brittle Jones was simply stupid and I do t know how TB12 didn’t check out of the play
Just like a lot of these stupid runs with no lead blocker and 3 TE in bunch formation
Get KO and Vea in there on 3rd and one and let’s knock some people on their arse already!!!
October 31st, 2022 at 4:19 pm
How bout just put KO and Vea as upbacks with Lenny taking a direct snap and just bulldoze over our weak interior line and their line too
THINK OUTSIDE OF THE BOX BYRON!!!
October 31st, 2022 at 6:00 pm
Byron! Phone call from Bruce Arians red pen on line 2!
October 31st, 2022 at 6:08 pm
It’s painfully obvious that Bruce Arians was the sole reason our team excelled on offense the past two years. It’s sickening to see the product our offense is producing now.
October 31st, 2022 at 10:31 pm
I find it amusing that most of the same people who bashed BA for being worthless are now saying he was obviously the reason for the offense and should be brought back. Such hypocrites.
Personally I can admit when I’m wrong. I have been defending BL most of the year, and I still don’t think it’s all his fault. The line does not hold blocks long so Brady looks to get rid of the ball extremely fast, resulting in a lot of plays being thrown at or near the line of scrimmage. Some of those are by design but many are extremely fast check downs.
Anyway, there’s enough blame to go all around but I am done defending BL. Maybe it comes from Bowles, I’m not sure, but this need to be a running team with this O line and Lenny (who doesn’t look the same this year) needs to end.
THIS IS A PASSING TEAM! THAT is what sets up the run, which in in turn sets up the play action.
October 31st, 2022 at 11:30 pm
Lacking Leftwich, you suck!!!!
November 1st, 2022 at 12:36 am
Leftwich is a blockhead, it’s true, but I think Bowles is not a good head coach either. So you may fix the OC problem only to have the team still stink.
November 1st, 2022 at 12:12 pm
The fact that they haven’t fired Byron yet infuriates me
November 2nd, 2022 at 9:24 am
Sandwich needs to go. Put Bowles back in charge of defense only for the time being. Give him one game to win or out. Let Brady call his own plays. I bet Chucky would come back!